2nd European Congress on Global Education: Education, Interdependence and Solidarity in a Changing World

2nd European Congress on Global Education:

Education, Interdependence and Solidarity in a Changing World

Lisbon, 27-28 September 2012

Introduction

The 2nd European Congress on Global Education: Education, Interdependence and Solidarity in a Changing World is organised by the North-South Centre of the Council of Europe (NSC) in partnership with Global Education Network Europe (GENE) and CONCORD Europe, in cooperation with the Portuguese Institute for Development Assistance (IPAD-Camões), the Portuguese NDGO Platform and the University of Lisbon and with the financial support of the European Commission.

This Congress will bring together approximately 200 stakeholders in global education, in particular international organisations, governments, parliamentarians, local and regional authorities, civil society organisations, as well as educators from Europe and beyond, using the principle of “quadrilogue” and a holistic approach to global education.

This event builds on the efforts of the North-South Centre (NSC) and other stakeholders to promote global education since the Maastricht Congress Declaration (2002) which established a European strategy framework for improving and increasing global education in Europe to the year 2015.

Several achievements were made with regards global education. Efforts have been made to raise awareness and build the capacity of practitioners on global education. The concepts and contents of this pedagogy have been enriched through academic research and input, as well as through synergies with the scholars and practitioners working in the specifics fields of development education, human rights education, intercultural education, education for peace and conflict prevention and education for sustainable development. Among these achievements it is important to highlight the first European legal standard on global education that constitutes the basis for the future work in this field, the Recommendation CM/Rec(2011)4 of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers to Member States on Education for Global Interdependence and Solidarity.

In the meantime, there is increasing recognition in the policy making community that the global dimension of the educational process is essential to its relevance and that issues of world development, interdependence and solidarity are inherent to any curriculum for citizenship education in a global society. This recognition is gaining ground, but requires strengthening, as do mechanisms for supporting global education.

Ten years after the Europe-wide Congress held in Maastricht, there is a need to reflect and facilitate a dialogue on the achievements in global education, consider the changing realities and address the emerging social, economical and environmental challenges.

Objectives of the Congress

The Congress aims at facilitating a dialogue, a learning experience and strengthen political commitment to global education among stakeholders, in particular the international organisations, Ministries of Education, Ministries of Foreign Affairs, parliamentarians, local and regional authorities, civil society organisations, educators and other relevant actors.

While identifying guiding themes for the discussions – National strategy development and implementation; Curricular reform and education at the national and local levels; Competence development of educators; Quality support and monitoring; Campaigning and outreach – the Congress objectives are twofold:

1. To assess the development and progress of global education over the past ten years, since the adoption of the Maastricht Declaration (2002 – 2012):

– Take stock of the progress and experiences since the Maastricht Congress Declaration on “quality global education for all”, from the perspective of the practitioners and the beneficiaries of global education;

– Identify the priorities for further strengthening of global education given the existing needs and the achievements at the country level.

2. To guarantee commitment to the necessary support for and further strengthening and development of global education until 2015 and beyond:- Develop a joint commitment to global education strengthening, quality assurance and recognition in the context of formal and non formal education;

– Develop a set of strategic recommendations for each of the group of stakeholders, including proposals for greater coordination as appropriate.

– Encourage the development of specific action plans among each of the stakeholders for the forthcoming three years.

The Congress shall provide an opportunity to:

Raise awareness on the Recommendation on education for global interdependence and solidarity and help member States to set standards in this field;

Exchange ideas and practices developed in the field of global education and global citizenship in terms of policy development, pedagogical support and training mechanisms;

Discuss synergy potentials and provide opportunity to develop future collaborations between and within institutional and Civil Society Organisations stakeholders, and facilitate networking and interaction inside and beyond Europe in terms of policy development, pedagogical support and training mechanisms;

Raise awareness on the importance of inclusion of global education in the educational sector.